Despite the litany of injuries surrounding the club and the news of a positive COVID test, Nashville SC was able to come away with a 0-0 draw on the road against New England in what will feel more like a win than a draw.
Below are our player ratings.
Each member of the Speedway Soccer crew gives each player that saw the pitch a rating based on their match performance. Below is a quick guideline of our evaluation process.
- A rating of 6 denotes and average performance. Each player starts out with a 6 and their performance either adds or subtracts from that rating.
- Scores are determined after re-watching the match and looking at the stats, and are the averaged total of each Speedway member’s ratings.
Joe Willis – 8.8: Far and away Nashville’s man of the match, Willis made a slew of saves that kept Nashville in contention for their draw. His sixth clean sheet on the season is a career high as well.
Daniel Lovitz –7.8: Solid as always on the flank, and even chipped in on some good set pieces. He did give a little bit too much space a couple of New England possessions, but nothing to deduct from his night. His deflected free kick almost had good fortune of hitting the back of the net too.
Dave Romney – 7.5: Had a few key blocks in the draw. His defensive prowess was on full display. As long as he’s healthy, he’s a lock to start every match.
Walker Zimmerman – 7.5: Good in the air as always, including a couple of chances in the opposition’s box. One of them was a volley that he wildly lashed at, but that’s not his job to score anyways (even though he can as we’ve seen.)
Alistar Johnston – 7.5: Another game, another good performance from Johnston with his crossing and defending. Kept the left side of the field limited.
Dax McCarty – 7: Not McCarty’s best outing, but still did enough in his role in middle.
Brian Anunga – 7.2: Anunga worked really hard in the middle winning tackles. His distribution could have been a bit sharper, but still was disruptive in the New England buildup
Matt LaGrassa – 7.2: A good showing for LaGrassa in his MLS starting debut for the club. He was under control with his dribbling, and made some precise passes. Considering he’s not the first choice, he did a fine job.
Hany Mukhtar –6.7 : Hany was asked to line up out wide, which we’ve seen before. He also had some decent attempts with his free kicks. Unfortunately, his ability to create chances is done from his natural position in the middle. Not his fault though, since there were injuries to account for.
Randall Leal – 6.8: Leal, however, was asked to once again play in his natural position on the left side. His chances were also limited.
Derrick Jones – 6.8: Jones was tasked to lead the front line for Nashville, which is certainly out of his position and normal comfort zone. Although his dribbling was exceptional at times, his distribution was a bit lacking. He did as much as he could despite playing a role he’s not accustomed to.
Subs
Jalil Anibaba – 6.5: Came on for defensive relief but also drew a yellow card during his appearance on a unnecessary slide tackle on the sidelines.
Alan Winn – 6.3: A late substitution who was needed to relieve Jones. By the time he came on, it was clear that Nashville was playing for the draw.
Alex Muyl – 6: Same situation as Winn, as Muyl came on late to relieve Leal’s tired legs.
Manager
Gary Smith –: With limited attacking options at his disposal and a decimated squad, a 0-0 draw against a team in the hunt for a playoff position on the road is a fine result for Smith and company. The late subs indicated that the club was looking for the draw, and although the 4-3-3 formation that was rolled out failed to produce many chances, it did it’s job containing the Revolution when they were on the ball.
What say you? Do you agree or disagree with our match ratings? Feel free to reach out to us on Twitter and let us know your thoughts!
